Adoption of Zero Trust Architecture (ZTA) in the Protection of Critical Infrastructure

Abstract

Securing critical infrastructure (CI), including energy, healthcare, transportation, and financial systems, has become a pressing concern in the face of increasingly sophisticated cyber threats. These essential systems underpin modern society, and disruptions to their operations can have severe economic, social, and safety consequences. Traditional perimeter-based cybersecurity approaches have proven insufficient against evolving attack vectors, highlighting the need for more resilient strategies such as Zero Trust Architecture (ZTA). Zero Trust Architecture represents a paradigm shift in cybersecurity, advocating "never trust, always verify." Unlike legacy models, ZTA emphasises continuous authentication, least privilege access, and network micro-segmentation to mitigate external and internal threats. By assuming that breaches are inevitable, ZTA enforces stringent access controls and real-time monitoring to safeguard critical systems. This review examines the adoption of ZTA in the protection of critical infrastructure.Key findings showed the benefits of ZTA, including enhanced resilience against cyberattacks and improved regulatory compliance. The paper also discusses challenges such as integration with legacy systems, resource constraints, and organisational resistance. Recommendations are provided to guide the phased implementation of ZTA and promote cross-sector collaboration to secure critical infrastructure effectively.